Photo courtesy of Kent Gidley – Alabama Athletics
In a year that was surrounded by hype for Trevor Lawrence, Justin Fields, Sam Ehlinger and so many other quarterbacks, Devonta Smith was crowned the best player in college football last night.
This award is typically reserved for quarterbacks and running backs due to the amount of shine they see throughout a season, but Smith’s production was too impressive to be ignored. 1,641 yards on 105 receptions was merely a freeze frame of just how efficient Smith was this season. Smith was electric in the way that he racked up those yards as well as his 21 total touchdowns. Pair these numbers with the success it triggered within his team and you’ve got a real case for this being one of the greatest seasons for a receiver in college football history.
Only 3 other wideouts have received the nations highest individual award, the most recent of which being Michigan’s Desmond Howard back in 1991. Though Smith pulled ahead in the betting odds during the home-stretch, he entered the season with 100-1 odds. This makes him the 2nd winner in as many years to enter with triple digit odds. While these may be outliers in what have been somewhat odd seasons, can we expect to see more “Cinderella” Heisman winners?
